Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-05-21
SOUTHERN RICH MEN.
of the Sunny South Who
Made Money in Railroads-"OId
Joe Brown" and His WAYS.
How Georgia's Wealthy Senator Has Piled
Upa Fortune-Messrs. Magee, Cole,
Inmap and Other Hen.
Philadelnhia Press.


Southern rich men are g comparatively
recent institution. Before the war the
riotous, wreckless planters, who used tC
stake their crops and darkies on the turr
of a card on the Mississippi river steam
boats, or bring their eXtravagant familie:
to the old ST. Charles in New Orleans fol
the winter, were considered rich, but
their wealth was not of very tangible
character. 1t was seen in what they
threw away instead of what they had, and
would not be estimated very high now in
these days Of close business habits, bic
corporations and almost unlimited hold
IDgs of iron, coal and railroad stocks
After the war northern and eastern men
got hold of what there was to be made in
the country, and until year or two since,
to parody somebody's saying about Ben
Franklin as the great Pennsylvania, the
J rich southern capitalists were from New
I; York and Philadelphia. That is still 8
fact to large degree; but, with the ex-
tension of the railroad system and the de-
velopment of mines and manufactures,
there have come to the front few gepU-
inc southern millionaires, living in the
south, interested in southern property
and known from Richmond to New Or
leans as distinCtively southern men.
/ CHARLES NJ. MAGEE.
| The wealthiest of them, and probably
| the one best known in the east, is Charles
M. Magee, of Knoxville. He is Il railroad
man, president for many years Of the East
Tennessee Railroad, and very extensive
holder, not to say manipuletor, OF stocks
| in various southern lines. He made his
| start in life as school teacher in the
thinly-settled farming country in the
| northeastern part of Tennessee and
thrashed and coaXed knowledge into
many of the middle-aged grangers who
now come over miles of rough country
roads to see his splendid house. His
efforts in school teaching were probably
more valuable to his scholars than to
himself, for he gave it up after few years
and went into politics long enough to get
into the Tennessee Legislature. That
profession evidently did not suit him,
either, and in term or two he abandon
ed it and took fresh and final start in
the East Tennessee Railroad. The pro-
gress of tn road afterward became
his own history. He prospered with
1t, rose to be it's president and made
his big fortune through it's profits and
his lucky transactions with other roads
When the East Tennessee was sold in
1882 to George L. Senay of New York, he
got block of the bonds and mortgages,
and when Sensy failed in 1884 forced a
foreclosure Of the line in which it was in
corpOTa.ed, and, it is said, made great
profits in both phases of the deal Two
millions each way, or 81 900, 900 alto
gether, is the amount his friends credit
him with adding to his fortune. In the
Terminal movements lately he is said TO
have made great deal of money, and his
whole fortune is now estimated to be
somewhere in the neighborhood of Sl0,-
000 900. Outside Of railroads ne has only
comparatively small amount of bust
ness, though ne has within the past few
years showed his faith in the new south
industries by investing in coal property.
Mr.. Magee in appearance is peculiar
enough to be noticeable anywhere. He is
over six feet tall, very slender
and with peculiar aggres
sive movement in his stride which
makes him seem always full of very i'm
portant business. His nose is Roman,
his eyebrows large and bushy, his cheek
bones prominent and his countenance
sun burned and sallow' He wears a
moustache and goatee, slowly becoming
gray, and has light brown hair, which is
beginning to show few streaks of the
sand color. In Tennessee, whatever may
be his concessions to fashion in New
York, be wears plain gray suit, neat,
but not noticeably good, and big, COM
Portable soft hat of the style common
down here below Ohio. He spends a
great deal of time in New York in conn c.
ton with his railroad enterprises, but is
still very often at home, and regards
himself always as q Tennesseean.
E.w COLE OF NASHVILLE.
His rival for the position of the leading
southern railroad investor is f. W. Cole
of Nashville, tall, heavy vigorous look
ing gentleman, who reminds people who
have seen national politicians very much
of Senator Cockrell of Missouri. He has
his residence in Nashville, lives there
practically all the time and has his money
IN southern concerns which it takes very
few trips to New York to manage. He
began life poor. His friends have heard
him tell often how he first rode into Nash
vile on crippled mule, with his cash
capital of % ceuts in his pocket, and
mighty slim prospects of being able to
make it up again If it became, as the in
surance men say, "impaired" by any too
heavy expenditure for dinner. He got
into railroad office after some trouble,
and then, like Msgee, rose from one
position to another until be became
president of the Nashville, Chattanooga
and St. Louis Road. A few years ago the
road was sold to the Louisville aud Nash
vile, and with something like 100000
as the result Of his years of work he began
investing in real estate. His luck stayed
with him as steadily as when in the rail-
roads, and he made more money probably |
than anybody else in Middle Tennesseea
while the boom lasted. At presenEHs has
gone largely into the coal and iron enter |
prises in Alabama and Tennessee, aad is |
now president of new iron zsid coal !
company which carries in its title thef
names OF both states. At Sheffield, where !
its principal plant is located, it is getting |
five furnaces ready for operation anaS@ill |
mine both coal and iron from an Immense |
extent of rich territory.
Mr.. Cole is interested in so many other
that nobody except himself |
seems competent to give the full list. He
is great Methodist, just as active in the
affairs of the church as in worldly matters
of iron, coal and real estate, and at his
workroom at his house in the evening has
8 string of callers from the mines, fur
nsces and real estate offices, very plenti-
fnl1v saudUiphEd Tpifb y,roarbar-